Convert audio to M4A — free online tool

Convert audio to M4A (AAC in an MPEG-4 container) at 96 to 320 kbps for iPhone, Apple Music and video projects, processed in your browser.

Audio

Convert audio to M4A

Choose a file, adjust the edit, preview the result, and export it.

Or drop an MP3, WAV, M4A, AAC, FLAC, OGG, Opus, or WebM audio file anywhere on this page.

Processed audio will appear here.

What to know

M4A here means AAC audio stored in an MPEG-4 container, written with the audio/mp4 type. It is the native audio format of iPhone voice memos, Apple Music files and many video editors, which is the main reason to choose it over MP3.

AAC generally reaches a similar sound at a lower bitrate than MP3, so 128 kbps is a reasonable level for speech and 192 or 256 kbps covers most music. A 3-minute song at 256 kbps comes to 180 s x 32,000 bytes, about 5.8 MB.

If your source is already an M4A, such as a phone recording, the file is decoded and encoded again; it does not copy the stream. Use that only to change bitrate, sample rate or channel count, for instance turning a stereo voice memo into a mono one.

Rates of 22.05, 32, 44.1 and 48 kHz are available, and 48 kHz is worth setting when the file will go into a video timeline, which normally runs at that rate. The Audio quality menu stays visible for M4A, with 192 kbps preselected.

Output files are named with the source name, the mode and the .m4a extension, so voice-note.wav comes out as voice-note-m4a.m4a.

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How to use Convert audio to M4A — free online tool
  1. Load a WAV, MP3, FLAC or OGG file; the Export format menu is already on M4A (AAC).
  2. Set Audio quality to 128 kbps for speech or 256 kbps for music.
  3. Choose 48 kHz for Sample rate if the clip is headed for a video editor, and leave Channels on Keep source unless you need mono.
  4. Convert, check the preview player, then download the .m4a file.

Quick answers

Is M4A the same thing as AAC?

Not exactly. AAC is the compression method and M4A is the MPEG-4 container that carries it, which is why players show an .m4a file with AAC audio inside.

Will an iPhone play the M4A file that comes out?

Yes, AAC in an MPEG-4 container is the format Apple devices use for their own recordings, so the file opens in Music and Files without extra apps.

What size is a 3-minute track at 256 kbps?

About 5.8 MB, from 256,000 bits divided by 8 gives 32,000 bytes per second, times 180 seconds.

Does converting an M4A to M4A make sense?

Only to change the bitrate, sample rate or channels. The audio is re-encoded, so keep the original if you only wanted a copy.